Boston Red Sox: Another close game ends in loss

There was no dramatic comeback by the Red Sox on Sunday, no walk-off win the way there almost routinely was in 2013.

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By ERIC AVIDON

capecodtimes.com

By ERIC AVIDON

Posted May. 5, 2014 at 2:00 AM

By ERIC AVIDON
Posted May. 5, 2014 at 2:00 AM

ON DECK

The Red Sox are off Monday and continue their homestand on Tuesday when the Cincinnati Reds come to Fenway for a two-game set. After another off day Thursday, the Sox are on the road to Texas and M...

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ON DECK

The Red Sox are off Monday and continue their homestand on Tuesday when the Cincinnati Reds come to Fenway for a two-game set. After another off day Thursday, the Sox are on the road to Texas and Minnesota.

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BOSTON — This year is just different. So far, at least.

There was no dramatic comeback by the Red Sox on Sunday, no walk-off win the way there almost routinely was in 2013.

Twice they came back from one-run deficits to eventually force extra innings, but instead of the bullpen keeping Oakland at bay and allowing the Red Sox to mob one another on the infield, the A's squeaked out a run in the 10th inning.

The Red Sox seemed positioned to at least tie the score again and push the game to the 11th, but instead the kind of play that never happened a year ago doomed the potential tying rally.

Will Middelbrooks, trying to go from second to third on an infield grounder with no outs, was cut down. Dustin Pedroia followed by grounding into a double play, and the Red Sox were dealt a 3-2 loss in 10 innings.

"We were 1-for-7, I think, with runners in scoring position," said manager John Farrell. "The opportunities were there. They made a couple of key pitches. (Daric) Barton makes a heck of a heads-up play to cut down Will trying to advance.

"This was a day in which we tried to manufacture a run to either tie it up or give us a one-run lead," said Farrell.

Trailing 3-2, Middlebrooks led off the bottom of the 10th inning with a sharp single to right-center field that was misplayed by center fielder Coco Crisp for an error that allowed Middlebrooks to reach second.

Jackie Bradley Jr. then attempted to lay down a sacrifice bunt, but pushed the ball foul. He then took a called strike for an 0-2 count, taking the bunt out of play. And on the third pitch of the at-bat he chopped a ball right at Barton at first base, who fielded it cleanly and threw a strike to third baseman Josh Donaldson to cut down Middlebrooks.

With Bradley at first, Pedroia grounded a 2-0 pitch from Jim Johnson (3-2) to shortstop Jed Lowrie, who started the game-ending double play.

With the loss, which dropped them to 15-17, the Red Sox missed out on a chance to get back to .500 for the eighth straight time, and failed to finish what would have been their first series sweep of the season.

Last year, the team wasn't under .500 for a single day, and had swept two series by May 4 on their way to a 20-10 record.

"First baseman was in, but at that point in the game I'm trying to get over (to third) so it's easier to drive me in," said Middlebrooks. "Guy made a good play, and unfortunately I was out. "» I had to take that chance at that point in the game, to get to third base with one out."

The A's took the lead in the top of the 10th thanks to some poor relief work by Chris Capuano (1-1).

Andrew Miller, Junichi Tazawa and Koji Uehara had all pitched a scoreless inning in relief of John Lackey to get the game to extra innings, but Capuano couldn't continue what they'd done.

After getting Nick Punto and Crisp to start the inning, Lowrie tagged him for a double to left-center. Donaldson, who has seven home runs and 23 runs batted in, was walked intentionally to get to Alberto Callaspo.

When the count reached 3-0, a lone fan in the right-field grandstand could be heard amid the silence, screaming, "You're killing me; throw a strike!"

Two strikes ensued, but then came ball four, loading the bases.

Burke Badenhop was summoned to face Yoenis Cespedis, and got a weak ground ball down the third-base line. But it was too weak, and Cespedis beat Middlebrooks' throw by an eyelash as Lowrie crossed the plate with what proved to be the winning run.

"Tough play," said Middlebrooks. "Swinging bunts are hard to prevent."

The end overshadowed some solid work by Lackey, who battled the A's young stud Sonny Gray, who entered Sunday second in the American League with a 1.76 earned run average, to a stalemate.

Both pitched six innings and allowed two runs.

The A's struck with two outs in the top of the first when Donaldson walked and stole second, then scored on Brandon Moss' single. The Red Sox drew even in the fifth on a double by Grady Sizemore that drove in Mike Carp, who had singled.

The A's went back on top in the sixth when Cespedis doubled in Donaldson, but A.J. Pierzynski's rocket over the Red Sox bullpen in the bottom of the seventh inning evened the score at 2-2.

"You've got to give (Oakland) credit," said Lackey. "Good team. My command has been a little better the last few starts, but overall I felt pretty good about it."

But this year is different, at least so far. So even on a day when Lackey gave up just two runs and fought Gray to a draw, the Red Sox couldn't get the job done.